Design Context Book.

So this is the first time in a while I've had a proper think about how I'm going to categorise the design context book - I say book, but I'm ot even sure of that either!

The above are the resulting notes from the discussion, and I just thought I'd take a few minutes to write them up in a logical order, so myself and other people can actually understand what the hell i'm talking about.

Concept
 - Branding, divided into what I see as the 4 main areas - Logo, Environmental, Range, Guidelines.
However I'm pretty certain these will change. Not happy about having logo on it's own, as there will no doubt be repetition through each category - This section will probably change to Print/Publication or something similar.

Content
- Each book will follow a similar structure - I need case studies, quotes, interviews and opinions of others to back up my own view. Each section will need an introduction, where I can state the purpose of the book/whatever it might be, as well as a practical 'how to' section, which will detail all the useful information I have gathered over the years - sizing, formats, colour palettes, finishes, stocks etc...

Format
 - Should be driven by the content, I am however quite set on the idea of having a set of publications of some kind that can be read in any order. This means the set of books (or whatever!) will be interpreted differently depending on which order they are read, thus resulting in a fresh opinion or inspiration to go away with each time.

Considerations
- The format and design should reflect the content where possible.
- It must be easy to navigate and understand.
- Who is involved in this industry?
- Define branding/corporate identity.
- Propose questions, I don't have to answer everything.
- Define a target audience
- Include limitations, I cannot include everything on this topic.

Group Tutorial Feedback

So, after last weeks work shops I have neglected to think about my new rationale and statement of intent - simply because of other demands. So I went to this tutorial a little under prepared, but with a good idea of what I wanted to get out of it.

I've become bored with my position statement, so we had a go at re-writing that, and the discussions we had revolved around being specific but not restricting yourself. So where I had things like 'Type layout' - means that if I'm not doing type layout, people are going to wonder why? And in that respect, type layout is almost a given that doesn't need to be specified - Same with motion graphics really.

Also, I've finally cracked how to fit motion graphics into my practice without it becoming all consuming. I'm going to use it as part of the digital proposal side of my practice, using samples where appropriate, and small clips like animated logos or storyboards. I think this satisfies my need to get some motion graphics into my portfolio without getting so sucked in that I neglect other, far more important areas. There is just not enough time to learn the software, I am not a technical expert and I don't want to be!

As a group we came up with some changes that need to be made (see below) and my psotion statement became suddely very complex. So now it's just a case of simplifying these elements into something a little more understandable!
Breakdown:

• Corporate ID
• Branding
• Digital proposal
• Print
• Proposal of Range (specifically aiming at the clear delivery of ideas to clients)
• Concept and Application

Position Statement 20th Jan 2011

"Corporate identity & branding with emphasis on concept, application, proposals & delivery of ideas to client."


Don't like the corporate identity bit... and I think there may be too many words there that mean very similar things, but they all feel right at this stage.
To break it down further:

Concept = Building a brand that is more than a literal translation of the company or what it does.

Application = Brands can fall under any any areas of application - editorial, packaging or motion graphics, anything to create a varied portfolio and show a range of skills.

Proposals = Digital and print based proposals for ranges and distribution as this saves time learning software that I do not need to learn.

Delivery = Presenting these proposals clearly and effectively. This is all about the presentation of ideas in a way that gets the right information across. I see this as a very important aspect of my practice, and one that is largely ignored.

Workshops

Position Statement  13th Jan 2011

"Conceptual branding with an interest in type layout and a specialisation in motion graphics"

The workshops yesterday were really helpful, not half as confusing as I first thought they might be.
I had spent the last week or so reflecting on what I'd done in the previous module - and areas of interest for the coming module, but even with that forethought it was difficult to decide on themes and subjects. I'm happy with my position statement, and the design disciplines that I intent to put into practice over the next few months, so the emphasis really is on trying to decipher themes and subjects to apply these disciplines to. Having said that there are some interesting areas noted down here...

• Limited Colour
• 3D Space
• Collections/ranges
• Fashion/retail
• Sound/music

The second half of the workshop basically forced us to make connections between these two areas, which was not only extremely helpful - but also pretty fun!
It made me start to consider briefs that I wouldn't have even thought of had I not made these connections - and I'm not saying any of the statements set out below are finalised, but it's certainly a spring board for further development.
I'm going to revise all of this over the weekend anyway, I think I need to take a step back from it for now and actually get on with some designing.